Increasing Students' Mindfulness, Perseverance and Motivation Using Exemplary Children's Literature (Grades K-6)

Presented by Jennifer Medina
Outstanding Educator and National Presenter

Specifically Designed for Classroom Teachers, School Librarians, School Library Paraprofessionals, Reading Specialists, Literacy Coaches, Special Education Staff, Title I Staff, and Administrators

Learn about the latest children’s books and innovative ways for classroom teachers and school librarians to utilize exemplary children’s literature to improve academic success and positive classroom behaviors
Practical ideas to improve reading and comprehension skills, and increase the academic success across grade levels
Increase students’ mindfulness, perseverance, and motivation by diving into good books and building a reading community
Fun and educational activities to catch up struggling students motivated and engaged in reading and writing

Practical Ideas and Strategies

In this NEW seminar, you will have the opportunity to explore how to enhance students’ mindfulness, perseverance and motivation through exemplary children’s literature using strategies designed for all classrooms. In the process, you’ll also accelerate your students’ reading and writing skills.

Jennifer Benedict Medina will share dozens of book titles, practical strategies and engaging hands-on lessons to address your students’ mindfulness, perseverance and motivation through literacy. You will receive resources and extensive children’s literature book lists to build your students’ ability to be mindful, increase their motivation and develop stronger perseverance skills. You will also receive an extensive resource handbook full of creative and engaging activities to increase social and academic development in your classroom.

If you are looking for creative, high interest, effective, and easily implemented strategies to engage and accelerate literacy and community in your class while increasing the mindfulness, perseverance and motivation of your students, this seminar is for you.

Ten Key Benefits of Attending

Utilize Children’s Literature to Strengthen Your Students’ Literacy Skills and Maximize Mindfulness
Learn how to match engaging books to your students’ interests and reading levels to develop and strengthen your students’ literacy skills … Implement innovative strategies to increase mindfulness and strengthen learning
Motivate Both Struggling and Accelerated Students in Your Classroom
Enhance your instruction to maximize learning and motivation for all students … Discover innovative ways to address the needs of your students from struggling readers to accelerated
Learn the Latest Research on Best Practices in Literacy Development
Strengthen your reading program for any grade level with quick and simple research-based activities on access and choice to good books, summer slide prevention, and implementing book talks
Develop an Inclusive Classroom and Classroom Library
Create opportunities for students to interact with exemplary literature and writing to teach kindness, community, compassion and perseverance
Inspirational Children’s Literature to Hook All Readers
Motivate ALL students to become voracious readers by introducing them to a wide variety of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, biographies, graphic novels and wordless books … New lists of books that hook readers of all levels and ages
Create a Community of Authors in the Classroom
Increase literacy by creating student, teacher and class written books to build home and classroom libraries to create friendships, deepen relationships and strengthen literacy skills
Use Children’s Books to Increase Academic Success
Explore countless exemplary children’s literature titles that pique students’ interests and builds on their strengths … Connect with students and learn how to incorporate families into the process of increasing academic success
Address Your Students’ Socio-Emotional and Behavioral Needs through Mindfulness
Learn how to use exemplary children’s literature to help you improve the academic, social, emotional, and behavioral progress of your students
Books to Reflect the Diversity of Your Students
Learn from a highly experienced educator in the field of education and children’s literature … Help your students find books that reflect who they are and their life experiences
Receive an Extensive Resource Handbook
Each participant will receive a comprehensive resource handbook full of ideas, strategies, lessons and useful resources you can immediately use with your students

Outstanding Strategies You Can Use Immediately

Highly effective ways to increase students’ mindfulness and perseverance using exemplary children’s literature
Engaging and relevant instructional strategies that change struggling readers into voluminous readers and increase student interest and motivation
Practical approaches to generate more time-on-task and inspire students to be a part of a classroom learning community and strive for excellence in their work and behaviors
Ready-to-use resources and activities to strengthen students’ perseverance and grit through a love of books and reading
Research-based activities that will motivate students to become voracious readers at any level
How to create a culture of accountability with effective ways to increase students’ intrinsic motivation to read and learn
Specific writing strategies using exemplary children’s literature to build “Can do!” attitudes in your students
Dozens of strategies to implement immediately that motivate students to persevere as joyful readers
Best instructional strategies for increasing mindfulness through reading and writing
Hands-on writing and bookmaking activities that address mindfulness, motivation and perseverance that you can use with your students

A Message From Your Seminar Leader

Dear Colleague:

Every educator – whether it’s your first year or you count your experience in decades – knows that motivating students, increasing their mindfulness, decreasing classroom stress and strengthening their perseverance are among the biggest challenges we face today. As a teacher, I have always been motivated by exemplary children’s literature and reading strategies that engage struggling and accelerated readers. Good stories and great literacy activities serve as the foundation to build mindfulness, perseverance and motivation. These important skills are the focus of my new seminar.

Very early on I began my own journey in not only understanding the importance of mindfulness, perseverance and motivation but my passion became how to teach these critical life skills through children’s literature and literacy activities. Over time I also began to see how easily I could strengthen the resolve of my students and improve their attitudes toward learning and reading. From my students who struggled with learning to my higher performing students who struggle with perseverance, I saw the power exemplary children’s literature had on the development of these skills in all students.

I encourage you to join me in this highly interactive one-day seminar that shows how exemplary children’s literature and engaging research-based literacy activities can be the catalyst for increased student motivation. The day is packed with realistic ideas and strategies that can be easily implemented into the fast and furious teaching day. I look forward to sharing my enthusiasm, experience and ideas with you so that you, in turn, can create in each of your students the mindfulness, perseverance and motivation they need to be successful!

Sincerely,
Jennifer Benedict Medina

P.S. If you want to add to your toolkit for motivating your students and you love children’s literature, then join me for a day filled with creative, hands-on, “ready-to-use” activities that re-energize students!

Who Should Attend

Classroom Teachers, School Librarians, School Library Paraprofessionals, Reading Specialists, Literacy Coaches, Special Education Staff, Title I Staff, and Administrators

Special Benefits of Attending

Extensive Resource Handbook
Each participant will receive an extensive digital resource handbook giving you access to countless strategies. The handbook includes:

Extensive Book Lists that address academic and socio-emotional needs in the classroom
Suggestions for using children’s literature as a motivational and foundational base for academic development
Strategies and activities to engage students with a wide variety of reading, language and academic levels
Techniques to increase students’ mindfulness, perseverance and motivation

For in-person seminars, registrants will also receive a printed copy of the resource handbook as long as their registration is received in the BER office at least 15 calendar days before the event.

Share Ideas with Other Educators
This seminar provides a wonderful opportunity for participants to share ideas with other educators interested increasing students’ mindfulness, perseverance and motivation using exemplary children’s literature.

Consultation Available
Jennifer Benedict Medina will be available to answer your specific questions and the unique needs of your own program.

Semester Credit Option
UMASS Logo Up to four graduate level professional development credits are available with an additional fee and completion of follow-up practicum activities. Details for direct enrollment with University of Massachusetts Global, a nonprofit affiliate, will be available at this program.

Meet Inservice Requirements
At the end of the program, each attendee will receive a certificate of participation that may be used to verify hours of participation in meeting continuing education requirements.

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